San Jose, Calif., man chosen to head up Jefferson Live! and the Holly Theatre restoration

Thursday

Jan 31, 2013 at 7:25 PM

The JPR Foundation announced today that it has hired Randy Bobst-McKay, of San Jose, Calif., as the new executive director of Jefferson Live!

The JPR Foundation announced today that it has hired Randy Bobst-McKay, of San Jose, Calif., as the new executive director of Jefferson Live!

Bobst-McKay will lead the effort to restore Medford's historic Holly Theatre and manage the Cascade Theatre in Redding, Calif. He begins his new job on March 18.

"Randy has a combination of experience and expertise that meshes perfectly with managing the Cascade Theatre's ongoing successful operation with spearheading the work necessary to restore the Holly Theatre in Medford," JPR Foundation President Steve Nelson said in a press release.

"We are excited to get the Holly Theatre project back on track."

Bobst-McKay was hired after a three-month national search overseen by a committee comprising representatives of the JPR Foundation, the Holly Theatre Restoration Committee and the Cascade Theatre Advisory Committee.

Bobst-McKay is currently vice president for marketing and finance at Symphony Silicon Valley in San Jose. Formerly he was general manager and executive director of the Empress Theatre in Vallejo, Calif., where he oversaw a fundraising campaign to restore the 1911 building. He managed all restoration/construction activities and established operating systems and programming following the theater's restoration.

Bobst-McKay holds a Bachelor of Arts in Drama degree with an emphasis in technical theater and management from San Francisco State University. He has lived in several Pacific Northwest cities and has numerous family members who live in the Klamath Basin.

Bobst-McKay was selected from a national/local field of 26 candidates, many of whom had extensive experience managing historic theatre restoration projects.

Paul Westhelle, who has been acting as interim executive director of both the JPR Foundation and Jefferson Public Radio after his predecessor, Ron Kramer, was fired from the university in June, will continue as director of the radio stations.

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